Another week has gone by and my oh my how it has had its ups and downs. From stressful times with school work to feeding kangaroos, it has been an emotional whirlwind as I creep along in my final days in Australia. I have learned to live by the wise words of Scarlett O'Hara from Gone With The Wind, hence the title. ;)
March 26th- March 30th
This week at school was pretty relaxed. I taught all of the lessons but I felt as though I was finally getting into the groove of things. One really valuable thing I have learned from my teacher is that it is pointless to stress over minuscule things, it's best just to go with the flow. Especially with this population of students. My supervisor came in and observed my sensory lesson which was a big hit. I had my students create Easter eggs for their program this week using different materials such as jell-o, cereal, markers, etc. We discussed how each smelt, felt, and even had a little taste of the fruit loops- my childhood favorite thanks to many hours with my wonderful Father on the golf course. I also taught a cooking lesson and had my students make honey joys, which were devoured by the students and the staff! There were some behavior issues along the way and I experienced my first bite and being spit on by a student, definitely not my happiest moment but I dealt with pretty well if I do say so myself. My teacher was out on the day this happened, so I was completely in charge along with the help of the aides and substitute. Everyone had nice things to say about how I dealt with behavior issues and managed the students throughout the day. I think I deserve a pat on the back for handling that with grace. I was able to celebrate my successes with my teacher and other faculty members with after school drinks on Friday. Something I am definitely going to push to incorporate wherever I work, maybe after I have been there a couple of years or so...
Other than school work, the week was pretty calm. I am continuing my 10K training and have just about completed week 3! I am surprised with how consistent I have been. A perk is that Stacey is doing it too and when I see her doing it, it motivates me to quit being lazy! I also attended another Zumba class with my host mother and got to experience the wild teacher I had before. Very entertaining. Also experienced some cultural lingo differences this week. My roommate asked our host family's son who he was rooting for when the footie game came on television. Our host mum quickly let us know that saying that is quite offensive... We were in shock. Apparently using that phrase here means asking someone who they are intimate with. Fortunately, Ryan and the rest of the family laughed it off. I was nearly on the floor dying of laughter when everything was clarified for us.
March 30th-April 1st
After a quiet evening in on Friday night, we began our day at 5 AM to head down for our day tour to Margaret River. Once we arrived in a city Stacey, Bob, and myself awaited for our luxury coach to arrive so we could begin our adventure. Little did we know we were going to be making the three and a half hour car drive in a 1980's van with nine others. It was a pretty cramped ride but it wasn't too bad minus the bumps. Definitely an interesting adventure. We got to meet some fellow tourists and what was very relieving was the fact that half of them were traveling alone. Made me feel much better about next week's adventure to New Zealand. For those of you who watch Lost, we had a couple with us who were identical to the characters Jin and Sun. Bob and I joked about it throughout the day... It was crazy how much they were alike.
After catching some z's on the drive down we began our adventure at the Naturaliste Reptile Center. We spent about an hour touring the place (easily could have been done in 20 minutes) and even got to hold a carpet python. I was a bit hesitant at first but told myself that these opportunities don't come often, so might as well! What was frightening was when the snake's tongue began to tickle my arm. The guide reassured me that she didn't have any venom and I wouldn't be affected. Needless to say, not the best feeling in the world. We also were able to see lizards, crocodiles, frogs, and turtles.
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| The Aussie Wanderer... |
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| This little guy was my fave. |
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| Holding the snake! |
After our tour at the reptile center we were off to the Margaret River Chocolate Company and a wonderful wine tasting. Mom- you'll be happy to know I am bringing you one of their best bottles home, only to share with me of course. We enjoyed a nice lunch alongside the Margaret River township with the others and then we were off to experience Mammoth Cave. Mammoth Cave dates back over 1.5 million years and is composed of limestone. We were able to see all sorts of stalagmites and stalactites throughout the chilly cave. It reminded me of a field trip to Desoto Caverns as a child and made me want to go back one weekend. Although this cave was very interesting, it didn't hold a candle to what we have back in Alabama.
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| Providore Wine Vineyard |
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| Margaret River, obviously named after me. Duh. |
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| The guided tour headsets rocked! |
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| Mammoth Cave |
Later in the day we headed up to Surfers Point and Prevelly. Apparently this is the best spot to surf in the world. Just the week before, Kelly Slater and other pro surfers were in town for a big competition- hate we missed that! The waves can reach up to 7 feet at times. We were able to see several paddle boarders waaaaayyyy out in the ocean. Even though they were wearing body suits, they had to be freezing- the temperatures were quite nice throughout the day ranging between 65-72 degrees. The coastline was absolutely breathtaking. I truly felt blessed at the moment to have the chance to experience something as beautiful as the Indian ocean and its rugged scenery. On our way home we made a quick stop in Busselton to experience their famous "jetty" aka marina/pier. Apparently, there was a shark attack early in the morning and unfortunately, the person did not make it. Our tour guide explained to us that in 2011 there were 12 shark attack fatalities in the world. Guess where five of them were? You guessed it, Western Australia. We steered clear of the waters and enjoyed some ice cream and checked out the scenic 1.5 mile pier.
Today was quite the exciting day- a festival in our local park and an adventure through Caversham Wildlife Park. Hazel, our supervisor's wife, was kind enough to take the three of us down and explore Australian native animals as well as some familiar faces- cows, horses, goats, sheep, and even deer. The best part of the day- feeding the kangaroos and petting the koalas. Definitely a lifelong memory. The kangaroos were so kind and gentle and you literally could lay beside them and nap if you wanted to. At the koala enclosure we were able to gently touch their backs as they slept. They're quite lazy animals- sleeping almost 20 hours a day. To our benefit, one of the toddler koalas woke up and began to run all around the exhibit walking right up to our feet! I was very tempted to pick him up but was warned by the guide that they can be quite evil.
This week marks my last week at my school, I can't believe how fast it has gone by. Tomorrow the kids have "Easter Day" at the school filled with an egg hunt, visits from Peter Rabbit, and much more. Tuesday is my last day with the students- I definitely may cry. Despite how challenging these students have been, they truly have left a lasting impression not only on my teaching but my way of life. Wednesday I am off to New Zealand for a tour the south island. I can't believe it is finally here! I am getting ahead on schoolwork so I can truly enjoy this once in a lifetime trip. A special thanks goes out to my wonderful parents who have helped make this trip a reality! Once I return on the 12th, I only have one week left in Perth and then it's back home to Sweet Home Alabama. Roll tide roll. See you all so very soon!
-More pictures soon to come as soon as BlogSpot allows me to use more space!
